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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. land — ground
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. degree — from a university
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. tube — the underground
  7. key — the most important part
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. ball — a great time
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. ball — a dance
  13. foot — a measure
  14. pitch — completely
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. land — a country
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. land — to come down
  19. key — for a lock
  20. tube — a container
  21. key — in music
  22. degree — an amount
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. pitch — a sales talk

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com